I want to make sure that if anything happens to me, my partner gets all of my assets. Can I do this in my will?
I want to make sure that if anything happens to me, my partner gets all of my assets. Can I do this in my will?
Yes, but sometimes it’s better to have a Living Trust, as a Trust will keep everyone out of probate, and is really necessary if you have a child or children.
My girlfriend and I are thinking about having a baby. She wants to be the one to carry the baby. Our friend John has agreed to donate the sperm, no strings attached. Can we assure that my girlfriend and I will both have equal custody? Also, what if John changes his mind and decides he wants to take official custody as the father of our child?\
As long a John provides his semen to a California licensed physician (or sperm bank or medical facility under the direction of a doctor), he will not be deemed to be a father or legal parent. California Family Code section 7613(b). If you and your partner do a second parent adoption (or a new legal procedure under the Uniform Parentage Act) you both will be decreed by the court to be equal co-parents, and John will have no legal rights or responsibilities, and thus could not obtain custody.
What if my partner donates her eggs but I carry and give birth to the child and we had an anonymous donor?
Depending on which of California’s counties you live in, you would file under the Uniform Parentage Act to name you both as equal legal parents from birth. This legal procedure is much quicker than a second parent adoption, and does not involve the invasive nature of the adoption; however, it has only more recently been used in these cases (as compared to second parent adoptions.)
How do I make sure that if something happens to me, my child goes to my partner and not to my abusive parents?
Have a Nomination of Guardianship (in the case of Disability or Death) drafted, as well as including those specific provisions in your will.
My partner and I just bought a house together. I put in roughly 80% of the initial payment and my partner put in roughly 20%. We both plan to pay the mortgage bills equally. How can I make sure that if we break up, I get back the 80% I put down on the house and any mortgage I’ve paid? Also, if anything happens to me and we’re still together, can I make sure that the house goes directly to my partner?
Have a Real Property Ownership Agreement drafted while you are in a good place together, specifying your percentages and agreements. Also both of you should have a Living Trust drafted, which will allow you to hold different percentages of interest in the property, but ensure that the entire property goes to the other upon death.
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